The computer is widely established as integral to most office and industry environments, and is quickly becoming a common fixture in many households. Various desks have also been developed to facilitate working with a computer. However, existing computer desks fail to enable users to maximize the potential of the computer.
There are several contexts in which two users may want to operate a computer together. In workplace training sessions an instructor and student, or two students, often share a keyboard and monitor. Similarly, in the educational environment, shared use of a computer allows teachers or peers to observe and offer timely feedback. In the entertainment environment, increasingly popular computer games often are intended for play by two people.
Existing computer desks make the use of one computer by two users cumbersome. Following use by the first user, in order for the second user to gain proper access to the computer, the keyboard and monitor must be manually maneuvered in order to allow the second user to have full access, or the users must exchange seats to allow the second user access.
This physical movement of the hardware is cumbersome and time-consuming, serving as an inconvenience which interrupts the flow of a training session or game play. Such movement also increases the risk that hardware components will become disconnected or sustain damage.
There are a number of desirable objectives in relation to computer desks for two users. Such desks should allow coordinated realignment of the monitor and keyboard between users, and the time and effort required to carry out such realignment should be minimal.
It is known to provide a computer desk which could be used by two users. An example of such a device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,637,666 to Worrell et al. The Worrell patent teaches the concept of a desk having a rotatable underlying keyboard tray and a rotatable surface-mounted monitor platform. In Worrell, rotation of the monitor and keyboard is not coordinated, and the keyboard tray is not extendible toward the user.
It is known to provide a computer support stand which simultaneously allows for coordinated rotation of a monitor and keyboard, and extension of the keyboard towards the user, which could potentially accommodate two users. Such a stand is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,648,574 to Granlund. In Granlund, however, the keyboard tray is contiguous with the monitor support platform. The support platform is large and occupies a large portion of a desktop. In addition, extension of the keyboard tray creates a cavity which renders the platform surface ineffective as a desktop.
It is also known to provide a support assembly for a computer which allows coordinated rotation of the monitor and keyboard, and reversible extension of the keyboard toward the user. Such an assembly is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,619,427 to Leymann. The Leymann invention is not practiced as an integral part of a computer desk and Leymann states that it is an object of the invention to provide a computer stand which can be used independently of supporting surfaces such as desktops.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a computer desk with an integrated assembly which allows coordinated rotation of a single monitor and keyboard between two computer users.
It is a further object of the invention to provide such an assembly which can be realigned with minimal physical effort and time, and which minimizes the risk of component damage or disconnection.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a computer desk which has a large available desktop working space, including space for operation of a mouse or similar device, and a keyboard tray which is suspended below the level of the desktop and which can be concealed beneath the desktop. Suspension of the keyboard is desirable to reduce workplace injury by allowing a more ergonomically favourable work position, while concealment of the keyboard improves office aesthetics.